A free online course is now available to help people recognize and respond to the sexual exploitation and trafficking of children and young people.
Supporting Survivors of Sexual Violence: A Nova Scotia Resource is an online resource that was implemented by the Department of Community Services in 2017.
It has expanded since then.
According to the province, the new course modules include topics such as who is targeted in Nova Scotia, signs and stages of exploitation, how traffickers operate, perspectives from the African Nova Scotian and Indigenous communities, as well as how to be a support person.
“Being aware of child sexual exploitation and human trafficking, knowing what to look for and how to respond is an important part of ending the violence and supporting survivors,” Community Services Minister Kelly Regan said in a news release.
To date, it says that more than 5,600 people have signed up for the course, with over half of them fully completing it.
“I am proud to be a part of the new training. The explanations and videos were very thorough and shot really well. I’m looking forward to community feedback because it really hits home and spells things out clearly,” Jade Brooks, a former sex trafficking victim and author of The Teen Sex Trade: My Story, said in a statement.
Brook is featured in some of the modules.
Government says it is investing $1.4 million this year and in each of the next three years to raise awareness, support prevention and directly help victims and survivors.